Hiram aldridge



(No Model.)

H. ALDRIDGE.

GAR R003.

Patented N0v.1,1881.

UNETED STATES X PATENT rrrcra HIRAM ALDRIDGE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO THE CHICAGO CAR ROOFING COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

CAR-ROOF.

SPECIFICATIO1\T forming part of Letters Patent No. 248,905, dated November 1, 1881.

v Application filed September 1, 1881.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HIRAM ALDRIDGE, of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, and a citizen of the United States, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Car-Roofs, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relatos to car-roofs formed of metal and wood, the metal portion being of sheets having independent movement, respect- -ively, and the several sheets on one side of the ridge-pole being removable in a direction at right angles to the ridge-pole and in a direction the reverse of that in which the sheets on the other side of said pole are removable.

Myinvention consists,first, in separate metal sheets which extend from the eaves of the ro0t' to the ridge-pole, in combination with under and, upper carling-tmbers, between which the edges of the respective sheets are inclosed, and with slotted, notched, or grooved fram ing-blocks of the car-roof, and eave plates or strips and a grooved ridge-pole, whereby each sheet on the respective sides of the ridge-poleis provided with a supporting-sash, which holds its side edges and both its ridge and eave ends in relief from the frame proper of the car, and being thus held, and at the same time allowed freedom under extraordinary strains to move in its sash, it is not hable to be damaged by the wrenching of the canframe proper when the car is heavily loaded and traveling at a rapid speed. This obviates the danger of the sheets being chafed and worn through by the constant friction of the wood of the framing proper upon the metal sheets. With metalroofed cars this chafin g and wearing through is a great difficulty, as great loss and inconvenience from leakage is experienced when this chafing and wear are permitted.

My invention consists, second, in the upper carling-timbers provided with channels from or nearly from their ridge to their eave ends, said channels being on the under side and near the edges ofthecarling-timbersandunderlapped by the corrugated metal sheets of theroof, whereby water, which may possibly leak through the board covering of the metal roof and insinuate itself between the top carling-timbers and the metal sheets, is prevented from passing to the of Fig. 5.

(No model.)

edges of the shcets and leaking down into the car. It will be nnderstood that this leakagewater will first pass into these channels in crossing to the edges of the sheets, and thus will be conducted by these channels to the spaces between the eaveplates and the caveedges of the roof before it has a chance to reach said edges ot the sheets.

In the accompan ving drawings, Figure l is aperspeotive view of acanroof, illustrating one plan of employing my invention. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of part of the roof shown in Fig. 1. Fg. 3 is a longitudinal section of a part of the same root shown in Fig. 1 in the line 90 00 Fig. 4 is a longitudinal section of a part of the same roof in the line of the rldge of the root, and Fig. 5 is a transverse section of the same roof. Figs. 6 and 7 are transverse sections ot parts of a car-root, and showing two different constrnetions of the ridge of the roof to which my improvements are applied. Fig. 8 is a detail section of one of the grooved and channeled carlings.

The end timbers, A, side timbcrs, B, and the cross-timbers, C, of the root, as well as the eave plates or strips D, are constructed in the usual or any approved manner, and upon the frame thus formed an ordinary board covering, E, is applied in the usual manner.

The ridge-pole F is grooved, as at a, from end to end, or as far as necessary, to permit the insertion of the necessary number of metal sheets Gr for forming the metal portion of the roof which lies under the wood covering. This groove maybe adapter], as in Fig. 3, for re ceiving into it only the upper edges of the sheets, or only the upper ends of the upper and lower carling-timbers, H H, or both said upper ends of the carling-timbers and upper extended ends of the metal sheets, as illustrated in Figs. 6 and 7 of the drawings. The carlings may consist, as shown in Fig. 8, of an upper timber, H, and an under timber, H, and the under timber may have rabbets b formed in its edges at the upper side, while the upper timber may have channels c formed in it on its under side and near its edges. The two timhers thus constructed will, when screwed or bolted together, form side grooves, as at b, for the reception of the edges of the metal IDO sheets Gr, and also outside of these grooves the channels c will overhang the said sheets after the edges ofthe sheets have been inserted into the grooves. In order to have the grooves b cominence inside of the range of the grooves c, the upper timbers, H, of the carlings are made wder than the lower timbers. I however shall in most cases construct the carlings of one timber, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3, and form the grooves, as at b, and channels c, by appropriate machinery. Both modes of making the carlings will be substantially the same, so far as my invention is concerned, and in both my invention is embraced or embodicd.

Upon the side top beams or framing of the car grooved blocks I are applied, and to these the eave platos or strips D are fastened, so as to form the drip and air spaces g at the ea.ves ot the roof. The blocks I are higher than the ordinary stop-blocks, and they are grooved at f, in order to receive and support the lower or eave edges of the metal sheets Gr, as shown in the drawings. The groove in these blocks and the grooves in the carlings and ridgc-pole are all on the same incline plane, and this plane is above the frame-work of the carbody proper, and thus each of the metal sheets, when placed in these grooves, is supported on its four edges, sides, and ends in a sash-like structure, and on a plane which isolates it from the wrenching strains of the car-bodyin rapid motion and heavily weighted. The carlings are surmounted by the usual longitudinal strips or timbers, J, and also by the timbers K K, for forming the ridge of the root, and upon these and the eave-plates and grooved stops or blocks I the wood coveringboardsE are fastened by screws or suitable clamping devices, which do not form ho1es in the metal sheets G.

A roof constructed in accordance with my invention, as hereiu described, will be far less liable to leakage, while it will be more durable and cost for its construction about five dollars less than any approved car-roof With which I am familiar. The saving thus efl'ected will be about equal to fifteen per cent. on the usual cost of each roof.

The metal sheets are made of corrugated metal; but they may be of any form of metal found practicable.

I make no claim upon the wood covering, nor does it form necessarily a part of my inventon and combination.

W'hat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A combined metal and wood car-root having its metal sheets fitted loosely in grooves at their side edges and ridge' and eave ends, such grooves being formed in the ridge-pole, eave-blocks, and carlings, and on a plane which isolates the metal sheets from the frame-work proper of the car-body, and places them as far as practicable beyond the Wrenching strains of said body, substantially as described.

2. The combination of the carlin gs provided with grooves and with water arresting and con ducting channels, the metal sheets, and the drip-passage between the eave-plates and the edges of the root, substantiully as and for the purpose described.

3. The carlings H, provided with water arresting and conducting channels c, Which are in laterally-extended upper portions of the carlings, in combination with a metal root for a car, the sheets of Which exteud under and beyond the channels c, snhstantially as described.

HIRAM ALDRIDGE.

\Vtnesses:

A. W. GILMORE, J. J. MCUARTHY. 

